Try GOLD - Free

WINNING STYLE

25 Beautiful Homes

|

January 2022

For Lara Kott, the winner of the Town category in our Reader Awards, research and planning really paid off to achieve exactly the look she wanted

- SALLY SMITH

WINNING STYLE

KITCHEN-LIVING AREA

The distinct black framed doors anchor the open-plan space while drawing the eye to the garden. Bespoke French windows in aluminium, around £10,000, CJS Exteriors. Bespoke kitchen cabinets, around £25,000; Estatuario worktop, £7,000, all Trilogy Designs. Neolith glass pendant lights, £120 each, Kichler Lighting. Try the Weyburn Pecan bar stools, £310 for two, Perch & Parrow

HOME TRUTHS

THE PROPERTY 1930s detached property

LOCATION Essex

ROOMS Sitting room, kitchen/ dining/living area, playroom, utility room, cloakroom, three bedrooms, bathroom

PURCHASED 2015

PREVIOUS PROPERTY ‘We moved here from a newbuild terrace just 10 minutes away,’ says Lara.

DINING AREA

Lara designed this impressive concrete dining table, adding black steel legs to match the doors. Concrete dining table, £3,000, Smith & Goat, has this look. Gubi Beetle dining chairs in Sweet Pink, £275 each, RoyalDesign.co.uk, are similar. Herringbone engineered flooring, from £72sq m, The Natural Wood Floor Company

LIVING AREA

MORE STORIES FROM 25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

Picture perfect

This historic manor house celebrates the best of old and new and its elegant interiors look beautiful decorated for the holidays

time to read

2 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

Good tidings

A move from London to Northern Ireland presented Sara and Neil Austin with an opportunity to live a stone's throw from the beach and renovate a Victorian home

time to read

2 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

GOOD AS GOLD

Classic meets contemporary in the sitting room of this period home where walls in a joyful golden yellow provide the modern twist

time to read

1 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

Modern classic

Designers Mallory Robins and Elizabeth Bennett explain how they adapted a formal historic home so it has a contemporary casual side too

time to read

2 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS TIME

The cheerful colours that light up Charlotte Mackay's 1930s home are welcome companions to the festive decorations she puts up come December – and the kitchen is just perfect for Yuletide celebrations

time to read

2 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

GREEN AND GOLD

These two colours have turned a bathroom that was previously a bedroom into a warm and inviting space

time to read

1 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

A kind of MAGIC

Interior designer Maria Benaki's own home is a wonderful lesson in space planning and getting a colourful yet pared-back look

time to read

2 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

Craft work

Textile designer Helene Blanche and her husband Jannik celebrate Christmas in their Danish villa – a home full of colour and creative touches

time to read

2 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

All is calm

Natural materials, neutral colours and clever storage mean that Christmas is nothing but peaceful at the Danish home of interior designer Vivi Bang

time to read

2 mins

December 2025

25 Beautiful Homes

25 Beautiful Homes

DECK the HALLS

Dashes of festive colour, an abundance of foliage and a cocktail room for drinks have brought this welcoming home to life - with a little help from designer Sophie Pringle

time to read

3 mins

December 2025

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size